Chase Sapphire Lounge Priority Pass access ends on August 15, 2026, for anyone relying on an ordinary Priority Pass or LoungeKey membership. The once-a-year complimentary visit is going away, and so is the $75 option for guests and later visits.
Chase's public lounge page was still showing the current once-a-year policy when I checked on July 31. The Points Guy reported that Chase confirmed the August 15 changes directly.
The part most likely to cause confusion is what isn't changing. The Chase Sapphire Reserve isn't losing its Priority Pass Select membership or access to Chase lounges. Chase is closing its lounges to Priority Pass memberships from other issuers and memberships bought directly, while keeping entry for eligible Chase cardholders.
That makes this a real loss if you used Priority Pass from another premium card to sample a Sapphire Lounge once each year. For Reserve cardholders, it may be one of the rare lounge-policy changes that makes the airport experience better.
TL;DR
- The new access rules begin August 15, 2026
- Priority Pass and LoungeKey by themselves will no longer provide Chase Sapphire Lounge entry
- The annual complimentary visit and the $75 paid-entry option both end
- Eligible Chase cardholders keep their lounge access and existing guest privileges
- The Reserve's broader Priority Pass Select benefit is not going away
- Eligible Chase cardholders with a same-day connection can enter up to five hours before the connecting flight, instead of three
- The three-hour window still applies before the first flight of a trip or a nonstop flight
The Once-a-Year Visit Is Gone
Until August 15, a Priority Pass member without an eligible Chase card can visit one Chase Sapphire Lounge per calendar year, subject to space. That is one visit across the U.S. network, not one visit at every location. Guests and later visits cost $75 per person.
On August 15, that door closes. Priority Pass and LoungeKey members will lose both the included annual visit and the option to pay the lower $75 entry rate.
It doesn't matter whether the membership came from the Amex Platinum, the Capital One Venture X, another bank, or a membership you bought yourself. Priority Pass alone will no longer get you into a Chase Sapphire Lounge.
Your Priority Pass membership still works at the other lounges and airport experiences included in your specific plan. It simply stops working as a once-a-year pass into Chase's lounge network.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred doesn't get a special exception, either. It doesn't include Sapphire Lounge access today, and sharing the Sapphire name won't change that after August 15.
Eligible Chase Cardholders Keep Their Access
Chase isn't cutting access for its own eligible premium cardholders. The following cards continue to qualify:
- Personal Sapphire Reserve primary cardmembers and authorized users
- Chase Sapphire Reserve for Business primary cardmembers, but not employee cardmembers
- J.P. Morgan Reserve cardmembers
- Legacy Ritz-Carlton Credit Card cardmembers
For the personal Reserve, the guest policy stays the same. Cardmembers can bring up to two guests at no charge, additional guests cost $27 each, and children under two are free.
The complimentary Priority Pass Select membership included with the Reserve is also staying. You can still use it at participating Priority Pass lounges. The change only goes in one direction: a general Priority Pass membership will no longer unlock Chase Sapphire Lounges, but an eligible Chase card still includes access to the broader Priority Pass network.
This Looks Like Crowd Control
Chase hasn't publicly said overcrowding is the reason for the change, so this part is my read.
The traveler reaction is split where you'd expect. Reserve cardholders are happy about the chance of shorter lines and fewer waitlists. Priority Pass members from other cards are frustrated to lose one of the stronger domestic lounge options, especially at airports where the alternatives aren't great.
In the Reddit discussion about the announcement, several travelers said the old annual visit was already hard to use. They had been waitlisted, quoted much longer waits than eligible Chase cardholders, or turned away when a lounge was busy. Removing those memberships won't solve every crowding problem, but Chase is clearly reducing the number of people who can try to enter.
The once-a-year visit also worked as a sample. Travelers could see what Chase built without holding a Chase premium card. Now that the lounge network is established and the Reserve costs $795 per year, I think Chase would rather protect the experience for people paying for its own premium cards.
That doesn't mean you should run out and apply for a Reserve. Even if you value the lost visit at the full $75 paid-entry price, a single $75 visit isn't a reason to take on a $795 annual fee. Lounge access should be one piece of the card's value, not the entire case for keeping it.
Long Layovers Get Two Extra Hours
There is one positive change starting August 15. An eligible Chase cardholder traveling on a same-day connecting itinerary can enter a Sapphire Lounge up to five hours before the scheduled connecting flight.
The current limit is three hours, so this adds two hours of useful lounge time during a long connection. The rule does not change before the first flight of a trip or before a nonstop flight. Those visits remain limited to three hours before departure.
Use Your Visit Before August 15
If you have an unused annual Priority Pass visit and a qualifying flight before the cutoff, this is your last chance to use it. Entry is still subject to capacity, so having the benefit doesn't guarantee that the lounge will have room.
For travel on or after August 15, check the Priority Pass app for another participating lounge at your airport. Don't count on paying $75 at the Chase lounge after the annual visit disappears because that option is ending too.
Eligible Chase cardholders can currently enter with the eligible physical Chase card or its digital Priority Pass Select credential, plus a same-day boarding pass. Check Chase's access page before traveling in case the entry instructions change as the new policy rolls out.
Bottom Line: The Once-a-Year Chase Lounge Visit Is Gone
There is no more once-a-year access to Chase Sapphire Lounges through Priority Pass or LoungeKey starting August 15, 2026. If you don't have an eligible Chase card, your Priority Pass membership will no longer get you in, and the $75 paid-entry option is ending too.
Eligible Chase cardholders keep their lounge access and guest privileges. If you were saving your 2026 visit, use it before August 15.